Two Baltimore County parks are no longer under consideration as sites where ground-mounted solar panels could be installed.
County officials have eliminated Mount Vista Park in Kingsville and Southwest Area Park in Lansdowne from a list of properties where the panels could be placed. The county government is considering a number of public sites for installation as part of a goal of generating 20% of its power needs from renewable sources by 2022.
The county is soliciting design proposals from solar development firms. Officials amended their request for proposals last week to eliminate those two parks from consideration.
Councilman David Marks, whose district includes Mount Vista Park, said he asked for the change.
“I would like to thank the county executive's staff for altering the request for proposal to eliminate these sites,” Marks, a Perry Hall Republican, said in a statement. “I support more solar energy production, but want solar panels installed on rooftops, parking areas, and less productive land.”
Although the parks were included in the initial request, a spokesman for County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. said he does not support putting solar panels on green space.
Other county parks are still under consideration, but the panels would be placed on parking lots or carports — not green space.
The county also postponed the deadline for bids, which are now due July 2.